Just weeks before Copenhagen fills with world leaders attending the 15th annual United Nations Climate Change Conference, we’re celebrating the Grand Opening of Inbicon’s Kalundborg plant.

As the first demonstration model of an Inbicon Biomass Refinery, the new plant can turn 110 tons of wheat straw per day into 1.5 million gallons a year of The New Ethanol and other renewable energy products.

On November 18, His Royal Highness Prince Joachim of Denmark will lead the Danish delegation participating in the opening ceremonies.

Not a misprint.

“That 1.5 million gallons is not a misprint,” CEO Niels Henriksen points out.  “At a time when the U.S. press is giving bloated attention to 50,000 gallon projects, the size and scope and sophistication of Inbicon projects are quietly making history.”

Wheat isn’t the only biomass we can handle.  At our pilot plants, Inbicon’s patented and proprietary technology has successfully converted corn stover, sugar bagasse, empty fruit bunches, miscanthus, and other soft biomass.  

Power plant efficiency boost.

What makes the Inbicon Biomass Refinery so attractive for potential investors is the synergy that comes from exchanging different forms of energy with an adjacent energy plant.

When integrated with a grain-ethanol plant, our refinery can produce enough thermal and electrical energy to offset up to 50% of the grain plant’s process utility costs.  And supply 100% of its own steam and electricity through co-generation.

When an Inbicon Biomass Refinery is integrated with a coal-fired power plant, the power station’s efficiency can climb dramatically, and the CO2-emissions are reduced.  For U.S. plants, figure a doubling of efficiency. 

In either case, the clean lignin the Inbicon Biomass Refinery produces to replace coal can be used as is.  It eliminates the risk of damage to boilers as well as the need for further cleaning and consequent wastewater treatment.  

The power stations will send waste steam to the biomass refinery, where the steam helps break down the straw fibers so they can be converted into sugars, ethanol, and lignin, the woody part of the straw.  The lignin replaces some of the coal burned by the power plant, producing green electricity.

The fast track to November 18.

Benny Mai, Inbicon Vice President in charge of Kalundborg construction, has more than 100 people working to get the plant ready for its opening.  The project requires coordination of specialized responsibilities by multiple teams: Six engineering companies (DONG Energy Engineering and Technology, Vogelbusch, Niras, ISC, Ramboll, Process Engineering), individual consultants, and a number of manufacturing and construction companies.

But the opening isn’t the ending.  The new biomass refinery at Kalundborg will be the heartbeat of the Inbicon Biomass Technology Campus, which will become a new international center for cellulosic research and development.

Powering world leaders today, the world tomorrow.

As delegations from around the world gather in Copenhagen for the climate summit, VIPs will be riding in Volvos fueled with The New Ethanol.  It’s been made by the Inbicon pilot plant from wheat straw and blended by the Norwegian petroleum company Statoil.  

Naturally, we’ll invite the leaders to ride over to Kalundborg for a first-hand look at how Inbicon is putting solutions for climate change into action.

While the world is talking a good talk, we’re pioneering a new path to renewable fuel.  

The next stage for Kalundborg will be optimization of the equipment and process, which will likely begin early in 2010.  What we learn from the plant’s operation will be invaluable in improving our technology and transferring it larger-scale models like the ones being planned for North America. 

We’ll follow Kalundborg with a demonstration project at commercial-scale in the United States.  The first is expected to be in North Dakota.  It will convert 1320 tons of wheat straw a day into 20 million gallons of The New Ethanol a year.  Current plans call for groundbreaking in 2010 and the first New Ethanol flowing for U.S. motorists by 2012.

Greener, cleaner fuel isn’t just possible, isn’t just an idea whose time has come.  The technology is here, now, ready to roll out.

As Benny Mai has put it before, “Cellulosic ethanol is about to become reality. If all parties in the industry work together, this venture offers a great opportunity for everybody to make ethanol work for the world.”

The New Ethanol News.  It’s news for Inbicon partners and friends before it’s news for the world.  News about our latest technological advances in converting cellulosic biomass to The New Ethanol.  Breaking news about steps toward commercial scale-ups—in North America, Denmark, around the world.  Biomass handling reports, conference presentations, quick briefs on new collection equipment, specific details on new ventures, occasional bios, unique perspectives, helpful links, bottom-line assessments of what looks promising and what doesn’t—it’s hard to categorize the shape and schedule of the future of ethanol. We’ll keep making it work for the world and report the detours as well as the mileposts. Don’t look for a regular schedule.  We’re not slaves to weekly or monthly outpourings just to clutter your mailbox.  When we have news, we’ll send it to you first in The New Ethanol News. And when we don’t have news, we’ll try to keep quiet.


For More Information go to www.inbicon.com or
call Christian Morgen +45 99 55 29 83 Corporate or
Thomas Corle +717 626 0557 North America

To pursue your interest in projects worldwide email us at: mailto:info@inbicon.com